Priorities
by heartlandiansoisle
Summary: Ty comes back from the conference. Set after 9x12. ONE-SHOT.


Amy lay on the bed half asleep when she heard the stairs of the loft creak. She opened one eye, starring through the curtain toward the stairs and waited. Was the old barn making sounds on its own or was it actually steps on the stairs that had caught her attention?

Even though her eye kept wanting to close, Amy tried to focus on the dark corner of the room to see if a figure would step into the room from the stairs, and finally, she did. From the sound made by the shuffling feet she could tell that it was Ty. She had learned by now that her husband dragged his feet like a sleep-deprived zombie, looking for a bed to make him normal human being again.

Amy had woken up to the sound of a car outside just minutes earlier, coming and going soon enough, and she now realized it had been Ty's taxi, bringing him home from the airport. At the time Amy had been too comfortable in the bed that she had not wanted to get up and check who or what it was. Strange cars or not, Amy knew that she was safe here, in the loft of the barn, because if she knew her grandfather, he on the other hand had gotten up to check who it was as soon as the taxi had passed through the gates. Sometimes Amy thought Jack was getting deaf in his old age, because he couldn't always hear things addressed to him, but she had begun to think he most likely had a selective hearing that filtered all "the useless crap" he didn't want to hear, because no one got through those Heartland gates without Jack Bartlett knowing.

After hearing Ty put his bag on the floor in the middle of the living area, she heard her husband go to the bathroom, shutting the door gently behind him. Amy closed her eye again and listened to Ty going through the bathroom cabinet, possibly looking for his toothbrush. It was late and he had probably figured Amy was asleep which was why all his movements were quiet or done carefully as he didn't want to wake her up. She knew she could have saved him all the trouble just by announcing she was awake, but Amy also knew she was mad.

Maybe not mad at Ty, but at the situation.

Ever since becoming a partner with Scott, Ty had been elbows deep in work. It was the harsh reality Amy knew followed a decision like that, but it was starting to really weight on her.

In the mornings, she either let Ty sleep in until he had to go to work to do a night shift or he was up early and gone, way before Amy's alarm, and they didn't have a chance to share a good morning kiss. Sometimes Ty left notes for Amy to find, and as sweet as that was, nothing could beat a lingering kiss before they'd have to go to work.

And now, on top of all scheduling problems, Ty had to attend conferences all over Canada with Scott while Amy stayed behind to work with her client horses. They tried to keep in contact through quick phone calls and short texts, even via Skype (with not much luck), but this sort of communication wasn't what Amy had advertised it to be to Lou just days before. It started to remind her about the time she had been in Europe and they had had trouble tuning in with one another… That had been a disaster she didn't want to repeat.

The loft they had built to be their home felt lonely most days and even though Amy loved everything about it, because it was her first home with Ty and they had carefully designed it together to be the place of their dreams, but it didn't feel like a place she wanted to spend time in if Ty wasn't around. The things that usually felt extra special were just mundane items when there wasn't anyone to share them with. It was a good thing the loft was so close to the ranch house, because at least Amy had some social interaction during the days with the rest of the family who lived only a stone's throw away.

"Amy…? Are you awake?" Ty's whisper woke her up even more as she had again gotten used to the silence the loft had at nights. He sneaked out of the bathroom to the area where they had their bed, hoping to at least get a kiss of goodnight if nothing else.

But Amy kept her eyes closed and pretended to be asleep because she didn't feel like acting care-free or starting a conversation about their current situation with Ty now that he was probably exhausted from the trip. She figured it was best to talk things through when they were both properly awake at the same time.

If that moment ever came…

She felt the mattress move under her when Ty got into the bed and adjusted himself beside her. He sighed heavily, obviously ready to have a good night's sleep, but even though Amy had felt sleepy just some minutes before, she wasn't tired anymore. She kept replaying all the moments of loneliness that she had gone through lately and even though her husband was lying next to her, exactly where she had wanted him to be, Amy had never felt this lonely.

"Morning", Ty said while yawning as he was getting up the next morning. His hair was a mess and he walked clumsily pass the curtains to the kitchen where Amy was hunched over a tea kettle. She was making herself a cup of chai, already fully clothed, and watched as her tired husband came and placed a kiss on her temple. "Any coffee…?" he asked hopefully, blinking his sleepy eyes as the light of the apartment started to get through to them.

"No. I made myself some tea. You can make some coffee if you want", Amy said, still tense from the night before. She had tried her best to shake the annoying feeling, but she couldn't. Ty didn't have a clue about his wife's worries as he was too busy preparing himself a cup of java to help wake him up properly. He might have been up and walking, but his brain was still asleep. Amy knew that this really wasn't the place for the conversation she wanted to have, but she couldn't move pass this. "You came home late", she then said.

"Yeah, the flight was cancelled, so we had to wait few hours. I texted you, didn't I…?" Ty asked, an unsure tone in his voice as he wondered if he had only thought to text her or if he had actually done it.

"Yeah, you did", Amy said, nodding. She had not replied to the text because she had been so angry at him being held up again that she wouldn't have been in the best mood to respond with anything polite. "Are you going to work today?" she wanted to know what their time-frame for the talk was.

"Scott promised I could have the night shift", Ty said, getting his coffee mug out of the cabinet as the coffee machine started to heat the water. "I was hoping we could spend the day together. Though I have to do some laundry first, maybe take a shower…" he listed absentmindedly.

Amy started to feel even worse and she looked for something to change the topic slightly.

"You left your stuff on the floor", Amy noted, nodding toward the bag that was next to the couch, exactly where Ty had left it last night. Amy knew she could have moved it, but she didn't want to become someone who cleaned up after her husband when he was perfectly capable of doing it himself.

Ty glanced at the bag, sighing a little. He then told himself to get better at keeping his things organized and picked up, because he knew how much Amy hated it when everything was just lying around.

"Yeah, sorry about that, I was really tired last night and didn't want to wake you. I'll get it out of your way soon", Ty promised, wondering if maybe Amy had gotten on from the wrong side of the bed today.

Was this one of those infamous mornings where married couples picked a fight when they were mad about something that had nothing to do with what they were actually upset about? Even the way Amy tossed her tea bag out of her mug seemed like she was punishing the tea bag. Ty had yet to experience something like this as a married man, so he didn't know what to do, especially because he wasn't in a mood to argue first thing in the morning.

"So… are you busy? What do you think about the plans?" he asked carefully, hoping to soften her up.

"You mean you taking a shower and doing a laundry?" Amy asked, clearly mocking Ty.

"No. I meant you and me doing things together. Maybe we could go on a trail ride. Didn't you say something about Harley being restless in his stall?" he recalled Amy saying something about that when they had talked on the phone. At the same time he tried to go through all the special dates they shared in his mind, wondering if maybe he had forgotten one of those and that's why Amy was so mad at him.

"Yeah, maybe, I don't know", Amy replied to his options, shrugging to confuse Ty even further. She kept her eyes on her cup and just stared at the tea without taking a sip.

"Is everything alright…?" Ty had to ask finally when he couldn't figure out what was going on. He didn't like beating around the bush, so if Amy had something to say, he wanted her to say it instead of bottling it up.

"I just…" a sighing Amy said, still not knowing how to talk about her feelings without taking an accusing tone. "I just missed you."

Ty looked at her, wondering how that had anything to do with her looking so mad.

"I missed you too", Ty stated the obvious, placing his cup on the table for the time being and turned toward Amy. "I'm not saying I'm in a position to tell you what to do, but I would just think that if you've missed someone, maybe you should look a little happier when you have them back and not this… grim…?" he suggested carefully, gently pulling Amy closer by placing his hands on her hips.

She finally looked at him, her lower lip pouting a little even if she didn't realize it herself. Ty always found it so cute and couldn't help but smile. He fought the urge to kiss it because this thing, whatever it was, had to be taken care first, before his kisses might have a chance to soften Amy up.

"I know, okay?" Amy replied in frustration, feeling even worse when she saw Ty smile. "It's not just about this conference; it's about our life in general. Is this how it's going to be? You being away all the time and me being alone at home," Amy wanted to know.

"I do realize it's not ideal", Ty assured Amy, getting back to being serious. "I don't like it either. That's why I was afraid to accept the partnership in the first place. It's not the challenge I'm afraid of, I can handle that, but the being away from you… That's not something I handle as well", he said, pressing their foreheads softly against one another. Amy put her cup aside so she could tug her hands between their bodies. She always did that when she felt insecure. "But I thought you knew what it would mean for us if I accepted that partnership…?" Ty didn't take Amy for a fool.

"I know I said that and I still want to support you, I really do… You've worked hard to get where you are at and I'm so proud of you for it. I knew this working separately thing wasn't going to be easy, but I just never thought it would be this hard. I mean, it's not like we're co-dependent or anything, but…" she said, caressing Ty's chest.

"No, we are not", Ty agreed.

"I guess it's more about the time that we have together. I want to make it matter more", Amy said, trying to find a solution to this problem they were having. She looked up to Ty, with more hope in her eyes. "I'm still having trouble adjusting to this life where I have to do everything around the house and still work like I used to when the only thing I would rather do all day is be with you. All those domestic things take time from us and I feel maybe we need to check our priorities."

"What are you saying?" Ty asked.

"Well, I can do your laundry later today if you promise we go on a trail ride and actually spend some time together. But even if I'm doing your part of the house chores, it doesn't mean I'm turning into a housewife who will continue to do them every day, okay?" Amy wanted to make sure Ty understood what she was saying.

"How about…" Ty thought even a better solution, "we do laundry together and go to shower together?" he smirked mischievously. Amy didn't have to think long and hard what the look on his face meant.

"Ty, I just got dressed…" Amy pointed out.

"What was it you said about those priorities…?" he asked, looking up as if trying to remember what she had been talked about just moments before. Amy hummed, realizing maybe she should take her own advice. Ty was always good at calling her out like that.

"Okay, okay…" Amy promised, smiling a little.

"Besides… you do know these shirts of yours…" Ty brought his hands to her chest and started unbuttoning Amy's shirt as he spoke, "have buttons, right…? So, you know, you can take them off and then put them back on…" he continued, making Amy laugh with his silly commentaries.

"Okay, I get it, Ty", she said softly, feeling the butterflies returning to her stomach and smile tugging on the corners of her mouth. She looked at him and planted a kiss on his lips. "And… I see you've really mastered this opening my buttons thing too…" Amy noticed Ty was almost halfway done with them.

"Well, I don't mean to brag, but let's just say I have a motivation…" trying to sound humble, but his face gave it away. He swung Amy's shirt open and caressed her belly that was covered by a top.

"Oh yeah…? And just exactly what is that...?" Amy asked, with a wink, enjoying Ty's touch more and more every second. Maybe the fact that she had not been touched for days had been a factor in her moodiness too. She had gotten so used to falling asleep and waking up in Ty's arms that it was no wonder she was craving someone to touch her like this and when she didn't have anyone to hold her, she became cranky.

"I've seen what's underneath…" Ty whispered, kissing Amy again and wrapping his arms around her. Amy giggled at what he had just said. He then lifted Amy into his arms and she squeezed her legs tightly around his waist.

"And what about your coffee…?" Amy asked teasingly as she wrapped her arms around Ty's neck. The coffee machine was not yet done making him his coffee.

"Having your body against mine is already causing me to wake up!" replied a smiling Ty said as he started walking toward the bathroom, carrying a pleased Amy in his arms, to which she replied giggling, "Yes it is!"


End file.
